14
Intermediate Result Category and Activity Component
Activity Area and Recommended determination and conditions, if applicable from the IEE
4.8 b Construction of drying sheds, smokers and other physical
improvements of fish processing facilities
Section 3.5 Infrastructure : Roads; Irrigation, Renewable and Conventional Energy Infrastructure; General Structures;
Agricultural Plots; Nurseries
Negative determination subject to conditions:
6.1 Rehabilitation of existing facilities with no complicating factors, construction of new facilities where the total surface
area disturbed is 1000 m2 OR LESS and there are no complicating factors.
3. ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEXT OF THE MARINE AND COASTAL
ECOSYSTEMS IN GHANA
The Ghanaian coast is nourished by the Guinea Current, one of the most productive upwelling systems in the world. Upwelling occurs twice yearly, with a major occurrence in the period June-
September, and a minor occurrence in the period February-March. As a result, substantial marine biomass fuels the extremely important fisheries in the Gulf of Guinea. Of great economic and
ecological significance is the high abundance of small pelagic species herring, sardinella, and anchovies, which in turn support the higher value large pelagic species tunas, marlins, and
billfish, and demersal species snapper, grouper. This rich ecosystem has supported continually increased fishing yields since at least the early 1970s.
The importance of fishing as an economic activity in Ghana cannot be overstated. Ghanaians consume an average 23 kg of fish per person per year; well above the global average of 16 kg per
person per year. Fish is a preferred source of protein for most Ghanaians and is therefore critical for food security. In terms of nutritional dependency on fish, Ghana ranks sixth worldwide after
Maldives, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand and Bangladesh and ranks number one in Africa.4 The importance of the fisheries sector in Ghana has recently been emphasized by the re-establishment
of the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development MOFAD by the Government of Ghana GOG.
Ghana’s economically significant fishery resources result in annual revenues that in some years exceed US1 billion with the sector contributing as much as 4.5 to national GDP and
accounting for about 11 of agriculture GDP.6 The majority of this revenue directly supports the livelihoods of 135,000 fishers in the marine capture sub-sector alone, plus another 71,000
inland fishers and 27,000 women involved in fish processing and marketing. The vast majority
15 about 92 of those in the marine fishery are artisanal fishers. There is a significant ‘job
multiplier effect’ in the fisheries sector since for every fishing job, an additional seven jobs are created in related activities such as processing, distribution, marketing, selling of inputs and
providing services to the industry. It is estimated that the fisheries sector employs up to 20 of the national workforce. Thus, the contribution of the marine fisheries sector to household income
in rural coastal districts is far-reaching.
But typical of the global picture of apparent “wealth” in the fisheries sector, there is presently little or no profitability being generated in Ghana’s capture fisheries. The analysis is nicely laid
out in the World Bank’s Scoping Study 20098 that was completed in preparation for a 53.8 million loan to GOG for fisheries sector reform now the Ghana component of the West Africa
Regional Fisheries Project - WARFP. Although acknowledging the lack of key data, the Bank’s analysis shows that costs related to Ghana’s inshore marine fisheries sector have increased and
are approaching or exceeding revenues, and that the country is likely experiencing a net drain on national wealth from the sector. The problem is exacerbated by declining fish stocks and by
government subsidies that allow more people to participate in the fishery. The Scoping Study lists the following key findings that are worth repeating here:
•
The amount of effort applied in Ghana’s marine capture fisheries has increased significantly over the last 10 years;
•
There is evidence that key fish stocks are being over-fished and seriously depleted;
•
Those involved in the large coastal canoe- based fishery report that their livelihoods and living standards are declining;
•
The instances of conflicts between artisanal, industrial and semi-industrial fishers are increasing;
•
Regulations governing access and fishing methods are widely and openly flouted;
•
Shore-side processing facilities are decaying and declining, with only four processing factories meeting the standards required for export to the European Community; and
•
Fishers report they cannot afford to replace or upgrade vessels and equipment due to low profitability”.
Ghana’s marine fishery accounts for some 80 of the country’s total annual fish production, and the marine fishing fleet is made up of inshore or near-shore artisanal canoes paddle and
motorized, semi- industrial and industrial trawlers, and tuna boats. The bulk of the marine fish 80 that are landed fish caught and retained come from the canoe fleet which is highly
dependent on Sardinella species. This fleet also targets an array of other pelagic and demersal species. Over the years, the number of boats in all fleets have increased, and this has driven an
increase in ‘fishing effort’ with fishers using a variety of techniques such as lights, dynamite, chemicals poisons, nets with illegal mesh sizes, and larger ice boxes to secure their catches. As
16 a result, Ghana’s marine fisheries are in crisis, and landings of all stocks have declined
dramatically over the last decade.
Official national statistics indicate a 30 percent decline from a high of 492,776 metric tons MT in 1999 to 333,524MT in 2011.9 However, the reality in coastal fishing communities is much
worse than these figures indicate. The shrinking harvest is particularly dramatic for small pelagics – sardine-like Sardinella species. Catches have declined nearly 66 percent from a high
of 252,112 MT 1996 to about 85,000MT in 2011. In the all-important canoe fleet, the drop is even worse. It is now around 20,000 MT around 14 of the peak landings of 1992
approximately 140,000 MT.10 According to some fisheries researchers, when the yield is less than 10 of its historic maximum the fishery is considered as collapsed. Thus, Ghana’s
Sardinella fishery was near collapse in 2009 driven by several key factors which persist today: easy access to high demand markets; seafood dependency in Ghana and neighboring countries;
globalized demand and trade; political interference via subsidies, favoritism, and judicial interference; and an overall lack of control over Ghana’s open-access fishery.
Local demand for fish outstrips supply, increasing the pressure on already overexploited fish stocks. With open access fisheries, overcapacity among fishing fleets, and little or no fisheries
management controls or effective enforcement of regulations resulting in rampant IUU fishing, individual fishermen and women are losing economic ground while regional and national food
insecurity increases. A weak institutional framework limits the ability to implement strong co- management and use rights. Meanwhile, the low added-value of fish processed locally keeps
fishing households poor, and less likely and less able to change behavior or engage in more sustainable practices. Mangrove ecosystems—essential fish nurseries for demersal fisheries—are
threatened by extensive cutting and habitat alteration. Endangered, threatened and protected species such as sea turtles, marine mammals and basking sharks are part of the by-catch of many
fishermen. Unfortunately, there are no MPAs within Ghana to help preserve this biodiversity and protect endangered species.
High poverty rates among fishing communities lead families to give up their children to child labor, a problem likely to increase as the small pelagic fishery collapses, in particular in the
Central Region. Yet, few other options exist. Fishing settlement areas are particularly vulnerable to climate variability and change due to rising sea levels, increased severity of flooding and high
uncertainty about the effects of elevated sea surface temperatures and ocean acidification on the productivity of the marine ecosystems, and potential changes in migration patterns of
commercially important fish. Add to this that local communities are unable to produce food locally due to land use changes that are virtually wiping out areas available for local food
growing on prime soils. The end result is severely vulnerable coastal households and communities with weak adaptive capacity, and high exposure to climate impacts.
Still, there are reasons for optimism. Key enabling conditions are reaching thresholds that favor change. The USAID ICFG Project led by CRC and ongoing investments by the World Bank via
17 the West Africa Regional Fisheries Project WARFP is making inroads. The ICFG project
began building social capital and constituencies among the fishing communities, setting the stage for increasing their resilience. These factors give SFMP firm ground to build upon.
The above challenges and progress factor into the project vision, theory of change and its integrated and coordinated activities.
4. USG AND HOST COUNTRY ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS
